The Panasonic Lumix FT7 Shoots 4K, Has an EVF and Is Super Rugged

If you want to get your gear dirty, you better be prepared! The new Panasonic Lumix FT7 rugged compact camera shoots 4K, sports a built-in EVF and is super rugged indeed. It’s shockproof, waterproof, dustproof, freezeproof and pressure resistant. Oh, and it fits in your pocket!

If you’re out and about you need a tough companion. Meet the Panasonic Lumix FT7 (Panasonic Lumix DC-FT7 – or Lumix DC-TS7 in the US – is the actual name but who cares about complicated product names?). This is a really tough, really feature packed and compact camera.

Panasonic Lumix FT7 Tough Compact Camera

Sometimes you can’t treat your gear the way it’s supposed to be treated. Sometimes things get rough. And dirty. And wet. For jobs like that, you might want to take a closer look at the new Panasonic Lumix FT7 compact camera. It covers pretty much all your needs in terms of weather, dirt and water. And it shoots 4K.

Since you can choose from three different color schemes it already becomes clear that this is more of a consumer camera. Sure, but why not? In the end, this little thing might get some shots your full-blown rig can’t get because it’s too big or the conditions are too cold, too wet, too dusty etc.

The Panasonic Lumix FT7 sports a 1/2.3-type MOS sensor with 21.1 megapixels (effective: 20.4 MP) which enables it to shoot 4K video (3840×2160) at 30p/25p/24p (100 Mbps) and full HD (1920×1080) at 60p/50p/30p/25p (28 Mbps). Video is recorded in mp4 format and the camera has Power O.I.S. image stabilization built in. The real USP of this camera is its ruggedness. Watch the video below for a quick tour:

The Panasonic Lumix FT7 is prepared for all of it: Water, cold, dust, pressure & shock. You can use it 31m /102 ft under water, no problem. You can drop it from up to 2m / 6.6ft. It’s dustproof for all kinds of outdoor applications without having to worry about it. It can withstand freezing temperatures as low as -10°C / 14°F. Plus, you can put up to 100kg / 220lbs on top of it without cracking the camera. Stuff it deep down your bag and load all kinds of gear onto it, no problem.

Since it sports a dedicated EVF you don’t have to rely soley on the 7,5cm (3.0″) LCD on the back which is nice for a camera at this pricepoint. It’s not fantastic (1.1 million dots, 0.45x magnification) but in bright sunlight even such a small viewfinder is way better than a LCD screen.

The built-in zoom lens offers focal length from 4.9 – 22.8mm (28 – 128mm in 35mm equiv. / 30-140mm in 35mm equiv. in video recording). The aputure is rated f/3.3 – f/5.9 which is not great but pretty common for such small cameras. You can still go underwater with this thing!

Pricing and Availability

You can preorder this camera now for $447.99. It shouldn’t be long until it ships so you’re all set to take it on whatever adventure trip you want.

This might not be the most cinematic camera ever released but if you’re out and about in the nature this little thing will come handy, I’m sure. Maybe it’s just a crash cam / underwater GoPro replacement / FX shot camera for hard-to-reach places. But for that, it seems to be perfect!

Olaf von Voss is a freelance cameraman who is in business for nearly a decade. He is living in Berlin, Germany but has traveled the world as well while shooting mostly music related documentaries and shows.

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Olaf von Voss is a freelance cameraman who is in business for nearly a decade. He is living in Berlin, Germany but has traveled the world as well while shooting mostly music related documentaries and shows.